"Huh." Olya quietly sat back in his little hermit cave as he thought to himself, "It's been a month already. I wonder if that kid actually got all the World Wonders... Nah."

The old hermit wasn't just saying that because he didn't have any faith in Issei. In fact, it was quite the opposite. If there was anyone in this World that could've achieved such a titanic feat as to travel the World in a single month, then it could only be someone not from this World. Who knows, maybe Issei had some sort of otherworldly power or a different biology that allowed him to travel faster, it's anyone's guess as far as Olya was concerned. Still, this was a matter Olya just couldn't get out of his head. Should he have followed Issei? Maybe he would've found a lead about his plan to revive his friends. Still, it was too little too late, and Olya had missed his chance as the boy apparently had already set out to meet up with the Gryses soon after they parted ways.

"Even with today's technology, our choices for travel are pretty much the same as they were a thousand years ago." Olya commented, "I've heard tales of a guy tinkering and making up all sorts of weird shit in Centralis City, but apart from that the kid would have to mostly use transport wagons and ships, if he could even afford them that is."

In a way, this somewhat depressing view on the situation wasn't so much pessimistic as it was just realistic. Olya knew for a fact that the fastest you could reach the nearest World Wonder from here was about a week by wagon, meaning he'd have just three weeks remaining to get the rest of them. An even more difficult endeavor, especially once you take into account that the kid started with zero shils. He could possibly sell the things in his arsenal, or maybe make some dough tricking the folks on the road with that thing he called a "phone", but he'd need to be a masterful showman, which definitely doesn't fit as a proper description for the introverted and snobby teenager.

"Ah, but there is one way he could have done it by now." Olya nodded, "If, for whatever reason, he went in the order from top to bottom and scrounged up just enough money to go to Sibirus, he could theoretically have gotten his hands on thr Book... Ehh, there's no way... Unless?"

Looking at it from a different point of view, the chances of such a normally improbable thing happening could only increase. He's not from this World, and maybe they think differently back where he's from. Maybe going that way is common knowledge, and besides, of all the rides he could hitch towards any World Wonder, the cheapest route would certainly be going to Montes by wagon and hitching a private boat ride to Sibirus. When viewed from that angle, then there's really no doubt in Olya's mind. Issei had to have been in Sibirus right now, that is, if he truly did want to hurry back home as soon as possible.

"I should probably check just to make sure..." Olya fretted, "If that kid used the Book, then he'll surely fall under those lousy Gods' radars. For his safety, and definitely not just because I'm feeling kind of nostalgic, I need to go there no matter what."

Thus, he grabbed his trusty cane before walking at a slightly faster than usual pace towards the nearest transport wagon station. Over there, he began by kindly asking for a ride to Montes, then when he got declined he tried begging, and when all else failed - He resorted to bribery.

"Here, you guys still take gold bars, right?" He casually tossed the heavy thing he had stashed away in his pocket, "That thing's worth an entire house in some lesser developed places like Litus."

"S-Sir!?" The wagon driver gulped before dejectedly helping him up the steps to enter the wagon, "Fine... B-But if anything happens to you, I'm not responsible!"

"Sure." Olya shrugged, knowing full well he ain't dying any time soon, "If I do croak, just toss me off at the nearest cliff and forget about me. Oh, but be sure to loot the body before you do, I got some more on me and frankly it'd be a shame."

Nodding with his mouth agape, the wagon driver barely held his wide smile under wraps until he turned around to begin operating the vehicle. Soon after, they departed with the motor going at full speed. Each time they hit a slight bump, the driver feared for his life as he checked to make sure Olya didn't suffer from it, and he would always heave a sigh of relief when he turned around to see Olya demanding he speeds up when the next one comes. Olya rarely has anything to get excited by anymore after living for so long, so he would have to find very creative ways to turn the usually mundane aspects of life into interesting events. This was one such way he did it, by turning a wagon voyage into a railless roller coaster.

"Woohooo! Faster, kid!" Olya shouted as he pulled out another tantalizing gold bar, "Hit a nasty jump and I'll tip you plenty, got it?"

"T-Thank you so much, sir!" The wagon driver was practically tearing up from the happiness, "You have no idea how much this means to me!"

"Consider this the best day of your life, kid!" Olya smiled, "Not even the Gods can give you this much joy!"

----------------------------------------

***

----------------------------------------

"Ah, what an experience..." Olya recalled the enthusiastic and obedient wagon driver as he turned to the inversely careful person rowing the boat they were on to Sibirus, "So why can't you be like him, huh? Waves are sorta like bumps on the road, so what's stopping you from hopping over them with a bit more pizazz?"

"Maybe the lack of arm strength needed to achieve such speed?" The guy replied with a groan, "Besides, I don't wanna have to be held responsible for having you fly off the boat regardless."

"Aren't you like, freelancing this?" Olya inquired, "You're not affiliated with anyone, and technically this is kind of illegal anyways, so why care so much about some random old guy dying if I don't?"

"Well I personally couldn't care less about you." The guy heartlessly spoke as he continued rowing, "But from what you've told me, even if you fell off the side of the transport wagon, he could just stop and loot your dead carcass, meanwhile with all the weight you're carrying on you, I couldn't exactly swim to the bottom of the ocean to get those treasures."

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

"Is that so?" Olya nodded, "Then here. I'll give you what I planned on giving you in advance, so just hurry it up if possible."

"There's also that, old man." The guy wondered, "How come you aren't scared of me? It's not like I am one, but what if I was someone who killed his clients and tossed their bodies in the middle of the ocean after looting them. This is especially probable when we look at all that gold you have on you."

"Somehow, I just know you won't." Olya dodged the inevitable answer of revealing he's immortal, "In any case, since I gave you all the money I have on me, you have no reason to do that this time."

"I-I said I don't usually do that!" The guy got flustered, as if caught in a corner.

"Yeah, and I'm still young." Olya saw right through him, "But hey, with this much you don't really gotta continue that line of work anymore, right? So can I expect to see you at the extraction point in about a month to take me back?"

"A month...? Wait, old man, you're planning on returning from this doggone place!?" The guy couldn't believe his ears, "Ain't no way, I just assumed you wanted to go die somewhere cool, but you can't be serious!"

"Will you come back or not?" Olya asked him once again with a calm but unnerving smile, "Y'know, I'm a pretty good swimmer even with this old body of mine. I can come back even without you, and if I do have to swim back myself, you can expect to see me in court, accusing you of all those murders."

"You..." The guy somehow completely believed Olya's words, if not purely from his honest expression, "What are you!?"

"A friend, that is, if you'll have me." Olya stuck his tongue out playfully before patting the guy on the shoulder, "Now speed up! I'd like to get here before it gets cold! My bones tend to ache when it does."

"But you're going to the north pole!?" The guy sped up out of fear, "Tch, dammit, dammit...!"

And so, Olya had reached the icy lands of Sibirus yet again. This time, he was alone and old, but for whatever reason, seeing this landscape was nostalgic enough to immediately rejuvenate him. As he happily jumped out of the boat, his newest friend had called out to him.

"Old man! It's gonna be too cold for you, after all!" The guy shouted, "Please, take my coat!"

"Nah." Olya unzipped his coat even, fanning the sides as a joke, "This chill is pretty refreshing actually. You can go now, though. See ya' soon!"

"Mn..." The guy just kind of left after waiting for Olya to go far enough out of view.

"Ah, this place sure brings back memories...!" Olya smiled as he happily skipped onwards, "Oh, now that I think about it, I think I recall making tombstones for everyone as a sort of way to remember them in case I forgot. I should probably pay my respects as well while I'm here. I got a month, after all."

Since all the Book's wishes still existed even now, it was still a pretty awesome hangout spot to live in, filled with an infinite buffet and drinks room, a ton of great miscellaneous rooms to have fun in, and most of all, the temperature is always at a perfect 25 degrees. It's just a nice resort to be in, that is, it would have been had Olya not trapped the upper floors to the max when Ouroboras attacked.

"Ah, that's worrying." Olya saw the doors wide open, "Guess he did come here. Sure hope he's still alive down there."

Entering, he saw quite a mess was made in these rooms. Puzzles that were already done, some walls that were clearly breaking apart and cracking, the cowardly minotaur was long dead by now, but Olya wasn't sure if that was because somebody had bested him or if he simply succumbed to old age. Still, Olya felt a tinge of jealousy passing by him.

"Ah." Olya saw a half eaten and rotting corpse of a shorter fellow, "Oof, sorry guy, you must've been the lamb of the group when y'all got hungry..."

Thankfully, still, that guy didn't at all resemble Issei. Olya still felt pretty bad for the guy, especially when he realized they were just a few floors away from the buffet room. To Olya, as the person who had set all these traps and labyrinths, it was as if he had killed him, but he continued on nonetheless. Nothing he can do about it now, anyways.

"Some more corpses later and... here we are." Olya made it to the safe room, "Man, I've done this passcode so many times I can do it with my Eyes closed. Even now, when I hear the click and see the B-"

His jaw dropping, sweat coming down from his every pore, Olya had feared the worst. Indeed, the safe was empty, and he almost had a mini heart attack when he realized that Issei had somehow gotten into the safe and taken the Book of Fortune before remembering...

"Oh, wait. I'm dumb." Olya chuckled as he closed the empty safe up again, "I left the Book on display in the library. It looked cool so I just left it there. Right, hehe, my bad."

Climbing slowly back up the stairs, he had offhandedly wondered why he didn't yet see Issei in any of the rooms up until now. Maybe the kid died with the rest of his party and his corpse is somewhere hidden away? Or was he hiding somewhere, fearing that the old Olya was someone dangerous? No matter what it was, Olya had to try calling out for him, just in case."

"Oi, kid! It's me!" Olya shouted before coughing from using his weak vocal cords after so long, "If you happened to see a Purple Book in the study, don't go writing anything in it, y'hear? I know it sounds weird, but when I open this door, I'm gonna hope that that Book is still on the lec-!"

-tern, is what he wanted to say, but stopped midway once he saw the Book was gone. With a defeated expression, he had finally realized what had happened.

"Issei, no... No matter who it was that took the Book..." Olya just sat down on a chair there as he gave up, "You're on your own from now on. From the day you grabbed that cursed Book, I imagine you have already been doomed in the exact same way as me. Good luck, but I think it's already too late, most probably..."